Well, the hen was so vocal, and the gobbler was approaching, so I figured I had two choices. I could move to improve my position, but risk the hen spooking the gobbler, or just stay put and continue to keep the hen in front of me, and having the benefits of a live decoy.
Since the hen wasn't showing any interest in the tom's gobbles, but lots of interest in me, I figured I could continue to hold her close for even longer than she had already been there (almost an hour at this point). So, I decided not to risk her giving off alarm putts and spooking the tom any, but leave things as they were, figuring the tom would end up right in front of me anyway. So, I stayed put, and kept calling to the hen as needed to keep her close. I figured the tom would walk around the beaver pond and approach to my right side, and that's where the hen was hanging around already.
Then all of a sudden, I heard footsteps directly behind me in the leaves. That messed up my mind because that means either the tom walked through the extrememly thick cattails and marsh grass, or he flew across without me hearing him. The footsteps stopped, and he drummed. He was probably no more than 7 or 8 yards directly behind me, and my heart was pounding something fierce. I just knew he was going to walk out on my right side towards the hen, but then I heard footsteps going AWAY from the hen, to my left, but staying back behind me where I couldn't see him at all out of my peripheral vision. As he got farther away, and as the hen continued to pay him no mind at all, I eased my head around just enough to see him -- and then he swung around a little and stopped on the other side of this little ditch, and started strutting back and forth right there.
Now I had the gobbler about 55 yds to my left, and the hen about 30 yds to my right. And at this point I began to worry that the hen might go over there to the gobbler and take him back off the way she had came originally. So, I sat silently, and the hen contined to ignore the gobbler.
After a couple minutes of that, the hen began to slowly walk off, pecking around as she went, heading away forom the gobbler. This was an excellent development, and so I knew it was just a matter of time before the gobbler broke out of his little strutting zone over there, and followed the hen, right in front of me, where I'd end it. When she was safely far enough away, I gave him some very soft stuff, trying to coax him just a little closer.
After what seemed like forever, but was probably only a minute or two, the tom hopped the little creek, to follow the hen. By this time I had my gun on him and figured just a few more steps....
He eased behind a big poplar, and I pushed off my safety. As soon as he stepped out from behind the tree, he would be mine.
After about two minutes behind the tree, and with my thoughts turning towards how I was going to prepare him for the table, in a flash, he took off running -- the OTHER way, like he'd seen a ghost, or coyote, or something. I was stunned. I knew it was pointless, but I tried, to no avail, to call him back. I looked around to try to see what spooked him. Another hunter? A coyote? I know he didn't see me, because of the direction he ran off, and I hadn't moved anyway -- even if he did have x-ray vision and could see through the big poplar.
So, I sat there and called a little longer, 15 or twenty minutes, then decided I needed a change of scenery. So, I got up, and started to call and crawl in the direction the hen had gone.
To finish the story, I struck another tom, that had two hens with him, and ended up killing him just before noon. And as far as the mystery of what spooked the first tom, all I can figure is that the ghost that tom saw was maybe the 2nd tom that I ended up killing.
